for once
I would like
to hear someone
name him from someplace else
other than the sky
shape him
from something else
other than ash
play back his breath
through the thumping of drums
the tearing of membranes
the twanging of rusty strings
on a cracked guitar
the shriek of a sax
or a virginal pagan
offering to the saints
the break of a vocal chord
in a yodel
the taste of salt
an old woman’s cracked coral
for once I would like
to see someone
trying to cup the foam
of a receding wave
trying to clutch
at pockets of air
trying to break
my fall
